


Fullmetal No More

by Hierophantastic



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: Ed has an assistant, Ed is researching stuff, I don't do his character justice, Post-Canon, Swearing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-15
Updated: 2019-01-15
Packaged: 2019-10-10 18:31:30
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,441
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17431250
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hierophantastic/pseuds/Hierophantastic
Summary: Ed travels west to unravel the mysteries of alchemy.





	Fullmetal No More

Edward Elric looked out of the window, watching Resembool disappear in the distance.

He hated to leave again, especially after his awkward proposal, but he needed to do some research before he could finish his book. He sighed as the conductor passed and punched a hole in the expensive train ticket. Now that he resigned as State Alchemist, he no longer had a reliable source of income. He would need the money he had left from his days in the military since he had used the hefty reward for his help during the Promised Day to build a university on his and Al’s parental home. It would take a while before it was ready, but then he could a stay home with Winry, who luckily did have a reliable job, and teach instead of having to travel around all of Amestris. It was worth it.

The only problem was going to be the practical side of things. He had no problem with the theory of alchemy, that knowledge was still in his head, but now that he couldn’t use alchemy himself he’d need to find another way of experimenting. Or perhaps he could find an assistant? Edward shuddered a bit at that thought. He was only eighteen and he was thinking about taking an assistant? It made him feel old.

_Oh well, we’ll see. It’s not like I have a world to save or anything._

Funny, he used to get so angry at being called a kid and now he spends his time feeling old. He did not mind it much though. There had been days in the past where he never thought he would get as old as eighteen and instead die a fifteen-year-old kid. Grinning with satisfaction at all the good thing in his life, he put his arms behind his head and leaned back for a nap. He’d wake up when the train arrived at Central.

_____

“Central Station! We have arrived in Central Station!”

The noise woke Edward with a start. He looked out of the window and was greeted by the busy, bustling life of Central City under the midday sun. Smiling, Ed grabbed his coat and suitcase and stepped off the train. He had not booked a hotel yet, but he figured he would first drop by the library and pick up the books he came here for. After asking for directions he was guided towards a small building. The double doors weren’t as big as Central’s main library or the military library, but they shone as if they were just washed and the white frame gave an overall impression of tidiness. _Third Library_ , it said in curling letters on a plaque beside the doors.

Edward entered, with his suitcase in hand. He looked around for a moment, taking in the books neatly stored on the shelves and found a woman with glasses behind a counter. Her brown hair was hiding streaks of grey. “Good day, I’m Anne Tresser. Can I help you, young man?” she asked with a smile.

“Tresser? Is there a Thomas Tresser around here? He said he had some books I was interested in.” The woman’s face fell. Edward could practically feel the drop in the atmosphere and a pair of eyes boring into his back. He looked around and a kid with an alchemy book in his hands met his eyes for a second, but he quickly turned away. Edward raised his eyebrows when he looked at the boy, who had the white hair and red eyes of an Ishvalan mixed with the light skin of an Amestrian, but he made no comment. Not even when he noticed that the clothes the kid was wearing seemed to be as cheap as they came. A brown shirt, grey pants, and sandals. But at least the colours were the right choice. If it had been white the dirt would stand out even more.

The woman spoke up in a sad tone, regaining Edward’s attention.

“...I’m sorry sir. My brother died last week. He was sick.”

That made Edward pause and turn back to the woman. The man had coughed an awful lot on the phone but Edward had assumed he was just a smoker. It was odd to hear that a man he had spoken with just two weeks ago suddenly died, and not even from a bullet, even if he hadn’t known the man very well.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know,” he said in an attempt to break the awkward silence. “Of course, I didn’t mean to make you feel guilty, sir,” the woman waved her hands apologetic. “Now let me see… What books were you looking for?” “Ahem, it was…” Edward fumbled a little and fished a note out of his pocket. “ _The History of Xerxes by James Lindow, Alchemical Actions and Reactions by Saul Pellet, Alkahestry by Ming Lang_ , and _The Origins of Alchemy by George Thatch_.”

The woman nodded and waved a hand at the boy. “Lucille! Did you get that?” The boy stood up, put his book on a nearby shelf, and walked to the back of the library. He came back soon enough with the requested books. “Can I go now, Miss Anne? It’s not very busy today.” The woman rolled her eyes. “Fine. Don’t get into any trouble.” After saying bye to the woman and a shy glance towards Edward he left the library. Edward stared at the door for a moment.

“Curious kid. Where did he come from?” The woman shook her head wistfully. “There are a lot of orphans on these streets, plenty of which are due to the Ishvalan War. Thomas and I run an orphanage too, right across the street, and they help out in the library. Since he died it’s been tough though.”

Edward simply nodded, a bit uncomfortable. “Well, how much for the books? Do you need my name?”

“Ah, yes, of course! We keep a record of everything, so please sign these,” she said, sliding some papers over the counter. Edward signed his name and the woman let out a small gasp when she read it. “You’re the Fullmetal Alchemist! I thought you looked familiar! Except...”

She shot a confused look at his right arm. Ed waved it around once. “I managed to get it back. Long story. But you said we have met before?”

“Maybe not really met. I hit you on the head."

Edward raised an eyebrow as she said that completely unapologetically. "One of the orphans had a doll whose arm was torn of by a dog. You were walking around that day helping everyone and fixed her doll. I never got the chance to say thank you.”

_Ah, that must have been back when I was trying to lure Scar._

_"_ Because you hit me on the head?"

"Yes."

"And why did you hit me on the head?"

"I don't like State Alchemists."

_Well, she certainly doesn't seem to be sorry._

“I can’t say I remember but I’m happy to have helped. I should be going now though, so have a nice day, Miss.” “You too, Mr Elric!”

____

_Now off to Roy Mustang._

Edward made his way through the streets of Central City. He knew the route to Central Command by heart and still remembered it, despite the fact that this was the first time he had been back in Central since the Promised Day. A left, a right, straight ahead and then right again.

Or…

He looked at a fence he knew was hiding a shortcut to Central Command. There were some warning signs talking about unstable buildings, but they had been there since the time Ed had first seen that alley and nothing had ever collapsed. For a moment he stood still and thought. He had changed quite a bit since that day. Now that Al had his body back, Ed wasn’t as reckless anymore. He had matured.

_What would everyone think if they saw me suddenly jump a fence?_

_Ah, fuck it. I’m only eighteen, after all._

Edward grinned mischievously and despite the fact that he walked like an adult and was dressed like an adult, he looked like a rebellious teenager. _A running start, grab the edge with my left hand and swing over the suitcase with my right, then the legs…_ Seconds later, Edward stood on the other side of the fence, his clothes a little crumpled but no worse for the wear. He smoothed out the wrinkles in his coat and walked along whistling. Ed grabbed his pocket watch, the reason he was headed to Central Command, and looked at the time. _Twelve-thirty. I should be there in about fifteen minutes._

He looked up startled when he noticed the blue light of alchemy around a corner. The alleyway passed through a small plaza, he remembered as he stuffed his watch back in his pocket. Carefully, Ed approached the corner. He leaned against the wall, about to look around the corner when he saw three thugs run away to the exit of the alley. Around the corner, a familiar-looking boy sat pressing a soon-to-be-red cloth against his right-arm. _That’s the kid from the library!_

In front of the boy transmuted spikes protruded from the ground. Ed stepped out of the shadows and the kid - _Lucille, that was it_ \- greeted him with a surprised and somewhat wary look in his red eyes. Edward smiled reassuringly.

“Hey, kid. Don’t worry, I’m here to help. I know a bit of medical alchemy. Let me take a look at that arm, okay? Lucille, wasn’t it?”

Nodding, the boy said okay in a quiet voice. Ed folded the cloth open and looked at the wound. _Simple stab wound. Should be easy enough._ Ed opened his suitcase and rummaged around for a bit until he finally found what he was looking for. “Aha!” he exclaimed, lifting up a piece of chalk victoriously. After quickly and efficiently drawing a circle, he pointed to the boy.

“Now, I can’t do this so you need to. Place both of your hands on the circle but have your right arm inside it.” Lucille looked confused but didn’t comment. He placed his left hand in front of him and his right on the opposite of the circle with his arm pressed against the ground. Blue light shone and the cloth around his arm stopped dripping red. Edward stopped looking the moment he had drawn the circle, he knew what he was doing, and had begun inspecting the pikes. When he prodded one his finger went straight through, coating itself in dust. _Brittle. And useless_.

Ed harrumphed and looked around for a circle. He found a piece of cloth next to a half-finished circle and a bag. Picking up the cloth Ed could see that this was indeed the circle used for transmuting concrete, however, one of the runes was wrong. After correcting it with his dusty finger, he gave it back to Lucille. “This figure was wrong, causing the concrete to become extremely brittle. Those guys probably only ran off because they were scared and that won’t work a second time.”

The boy looked at the ground and Ed could see now that what he had previously mistaken for wariness was shyness. Lucille gave him the bloody cloth he had been holding and on it, Ed could see the correct circle. “I didn’t want to hurt anyone.” Ed smiled a bit at that. _What a nice kid. Al would love him._

“How old are you anyway, Lucille? This doesn’t look like a popular hangout place for teenagers.”

“I'm fourteen. I always practice alchemy here.” Ed glanced towards the unfinished transmutation circle and back to Lucille, curious. “You want to become a State Alchemist?” Lucille shook his head furiously at that. “Then why do you want to do alchemy?”

“I want to help people.” “Hmm. Was that what that circle was for?” Ed asked, jerking a thumb towards the unfinished circle. Lucille shook his head as he stood up and walked towards the circle, a little bit unstable.  _The healing must have tired him_. While picking up the bag, the tired boy said: “I was trying to liven this place up a bit. I often come here to practice alchemy because of the quiet. Can I use your chalk? Those three idiots destroyed mine,” he gestured towards a spot of white remains where the chalk had been ground to dust.

Edward offered him the piece of chalk, which Lucille took eagerly to finish his circle. Then he made a hole in the middle using alchemy, down to the dirt below the concrete. Finally, he turned the bag upside down shaking out the dirt that was inside. Ed watched curiously as Lucille pressed his hands against the circle and a small sapling began to grow in the circle. There must have been a seed in that bag as well.

“Impressive. Floral alchemy can be complicated,” Lucille collapsed still looking at the small sapling. “It can be taxing as well, since you give your energy to the plant and seeing as you lost quite a bit of blood, well… Let’s get you home.” Edward put an arm under Lucille’s armpits and lifted him up. He barely heard the boy’s whisper.

“Don’t have one.”

Ed’s heart sank a little. “That lady at the library said something about an orphanage. Is that where you live?” A nod. “Then I’ll bring you there. Mustang can wait,” that last part Ed grumbled, but Lucille heard it. “You are the Fullmetal Alchemist, aren’t you?”

“Hm-mm. Used to be. Why?”

“Didn’t you have a metal arm. And what did you mean you couldn’t do the healing alchemy?”

“It’s a long story.”

“It’s a long way back,” the boy said quietly, but hopeful. Ed looked at the boy who seemed to be eager to hear his story. _A fan. Not many of those back in Resembool_.

“I guess. Okay, so it happened two years ago…”

Ed told his story -or the part that the public was allowed to know at least, if it was up to him he would tell everything but Mustang would get pissed, the bastard -and carefully tried to keep his ego from inflating whilst overexaggerating his own part in the story. One out of two wasn't so bad. The walk to the orphanage seemed shorter than it was as Lucille hang on to his every word.

____

The orphanage was across of the library, just like the woman had said.

Edward knocked on the door. Lucille could stand on his own two legs now, but he still swayed a bit, so Ed kept a hand on his shoulder. The door was opened by a little Ishvalan girl, around eight or nine years old. She was dressed in a blue dress, which seemed to be a little too large for her. "Oh! Hello mister, miss Anne is at the library right now and- Lucille!"

The girl let out a strangled yelp as she saw Lucille, or rather, the state of Lucille's clothes. Edward mentally scolded himself for not washing of the blood. "I'm fine, Ellis. This man healed me," Ed's hand kept him from falling over as he bent forward. "He's Edward Elric, the Fullmetal Alchemist!" Lucille added in a conspiratorial whisper. Ellis's nose scrunched up and she frowned.

"I don't like State Alchemists," she said with a hint of pride mixed in with her angry tone, as if it was a universal truth she had just learned and she was eager to share her knowledge. Lucille looked a little bit embarrassed. "Sorry," he mumbled towards Ed, who waved it away. He understood why Ishvalans wouldn't like State Alchemists. To Ellis, Lucille said: "He's the one who fixed Hana's doll, remember?" The girls face brightened. "Tintles!" she exclaimed, running inside.

Lucille motioned for him to enter and Edward did. Lucille closed the door behind them, yawning. "You should really get some sleep, you know." Lucille waved it away. "Later. You're our guest now and miss Anne isn't here, so I should-" A knock on the door interrupted Lucille and he stiffened slightly. "Of course," he muttered under his breath. Putting his biggest smile on his face, he opened the door.

"Hey Lucille, I closed up early because- Oh my god what happened!? Mr Elric!?" Ed waved slightly with an awkward smile as the woman from the library stood staring at the blood on Lucille's shirt with a mix of shock, disappointment, and anger. Luckily, Lucille saved the day again. _He might say he doesn't have a home but he sure is a lot less shy here_ , Ed thought. "It's fine, Miss Anne. Mr Elric healed me, I just need a wash."

"And sleep," Ed added. Lucille rolled his eyes, trying to stifle a yawn and failing. "But what happened!?" The hallway started getting crowded, now Ellis and another girl entered from down the stairs and more kids were shooting curious glances through the doorways. The other girl was clutching a doll to her chest. A memory stirred in Edwards mind.

-

_Edward stood up with a broad smile, mirroring the one the boy with the bicycle was giving him. “Thanks for fixing it, sir!” By the time Ed’s reply left his mouth the kid had already raced away._

_Ed patted Al’s metal arm, a bit of guilt stabbing through his heart as he heard the hollow, metal clang. “Come on Al, we got more people to help.” “Sure brother. What about her?”_

_Ed followed his brothers pointing finger and saw an Ishvalan girl with a doll staring at them. She flinched a bit when she saw they had noticed her. Ed approached her and squatted, so his head was at the same height._

_“Hey kid you doing okay? Need help with anything?”_

_The girl was quiet for a moment until she shyly asked: “Who fixed your arm?” Surprised and a bit scared for what the answer might be, Ed replied: “My arm? A friend of mine did. She’s a very skilled automail engineer. Why, do you need automail?”_

_The girl shook her head. “No, sir. But Tintles needs a new arm. A dog tore his old one off. Could he have a metal one like you?” She thrust the doll forward and it was indeed missing its right arm. Ed grinned. “Sure, no problem. Wait here a moment.” After finding a piece of discarded metal and some transmuting Ed returned with a miniature automail arm. One clap later and_ Tintles _had a brand new arm._

_“Now, take care of it, okay? It's stronger than its old one, but you need to make sure it won’t rust or anything. And there is a chance for grime and dirt to get between the joints.” Al giggled softly."What are you laughing about?"_

_“I’m sure Winry would be pleased if you followed your own advice, brother.” Ed glared at Alphonse. “I seem to remember a certain someone having cat shit in his torso that_ I _had to clean out. You’re not allowed to laugh at me as long as you can’t keep your pets any other place, Al.”_

_A shriek erupted from behind them and before Ed realised what was happening someone hit him on his head. "Get away from her, alchemist! I know who you are!"_

_"Please, Miss. Stop, we didn't do anything wrong." Someone had made Al feel bad, and that pissed Edward off._

_"You know who we are, huh? And who are you!?"_

_Ed stood up to find a stern-looking woman throwing a protective arm around the girl. "It's okay, Miss Anne. The small one fixed Tintles!" A vein throbbed in Ed's forehead as the little girl started pleading their case. Whirling around, Edward walked away. "Let's go, Al. We're not wanted here, it seems."_

-

The girl, Hana, smiled as she saw him and waved the doll in his face. "You see that sir!? Tintles is completely alright! not a scratch on him!" Ed stared at the doll a little dumbfounded. It had not only a shining metal right arm but also its left leg was made of metal. It was actually more of a harness, Ed could see as he looked closer.

“Well, you sure have been busy. Where did you learn to make that?”

“I thought myself from a book. I’m gonna make automail when I grow up!” Hana beamed as she held up Tintles. A yawn and an exasperated sigh sounded through the hallway. Miss Anne had regained her composure and was glaring sternly at the crowded hallway. “Lucille, clean yourself and then to bed. Now! Girls, make some coffee. And Mr. Elric,” Ed froze a bit. “You’re going to explain to me why one of my boys came back covered in blood,” A door opened slightly and Edward could see the shadows from eavesdropping children crawl out from underneath it. Anne glared at the door over the edge of her glasses. “In my room.”

“Yes, ma’am!” Ed repressed the urge to salute.

So Edward found himself on a chair in Anne’s room, a cup of hot coffee in his hands and another one on Anne’s desk. She was leaning on it, holding her head in her hands. Her stern stature from before had almost completely disappeared. She looked tired. Finally, she sat up and looked Edward in the eyes. “I apologize for my rude behaviour, Mr. Elric. Honestly, if you hadn’t come along Lucille might have bled out and I wouldn’t even have known. Thank you.”

She was shaking. Ed felt like he should say something. “It wasn’t that bad, Miss. The wound wasn’t deep. He just needs some sleep and he’ll be fine.” The woman nodded. “Of course. You’re right.” She sighed again.

“If I may say so, you look like you could use some sleep too, Miss Tresser.”

“I feel like it too. I stayed up all night doing the library’s ledgers, but now I need to watch over Lucille and his alchemy obsession… Damn it, Thomas, you shouldn’t have given him those books..”

“Don’t you have any other help?”

She shook her head. “There’s not enough money to pay a full staff. Thomas used to take care of the orphanage and I did the library, but that won’t work any more. The older orphans help out, of course, but it doesn’t help that people won’t soon adopt orphans dressed in second-hand-clothes.”

Ed twirled his thumbs, thinking, then said: “I might know someone who could help.” Anne lifted her head with a questioning eyebrow raised. “But first, I noticed there are a lot of Ishvalan orphans here. Is there any particular reason for that?”

Her eyes glazed over a bit and she smiled.

“Thomas was a soldier during the Ishvalan War. He spent a week there and then quit. He couldn’t do it, he said, he couldn’t just rob parents of their children and vice versa. We were orphans too, you know. So he made an orphanage here for children who lost their parents in conflict. Which of course means a lot of Ishvalans. Why do you ask?”

Ed scratched his chin. “Well, the guy I was thinking of certainly has the money to help you, and I think he would help if I asked, but…”

Anne raised her eyebrow again.

“He’s Roy Mustang. The Flame Alchemist.”

“Ah.”

“Yeah. And the first thing that girl, Ellis I think, said to me was that she didn’t like State Alchemists. So…”

“He has been helping the Ishval Rebuilt Project out quite a lot, hasn’t he?”

“That man wants to see Ishval rebuilt almost more than the average Ishvalan.” Anne stroked her chin. “I suppose some donations would go a long way. Thank you, Mr. Elric, and sorry again for my rude behaviour and that Lucille caused you trouble.”

Ed waved his hands. “Oh, he was no trouble. He has quite a talent for alchemy, you know. Do you have any idea of what he is planning to do with it?” It seemed like Ed had reminded Anne of all her troubles again. The older woman massaged her temples.

“I would have sent him to an alchemy class or a teacher, but we just don’t have the money right now. Maybe if your chat with the Flame Alchemist works.” Ed hesitated a bit. Another idea began forming in his head. “Pardon me, but does it seem like Lucille has any chance to be adopted anytime soon?” The woman frowned warily. _She’s really protective of those kids, isn’t she?_

“No, most couples go for smaller children. But aren’t you a little young to adopt someone? Do you even have a girlfriend?” _Oh, yes I do, old hag. A fantastic one._ But Ed bit back any sharp replies as he raised his hands defensively. “No no no! I mean, I do, I’m engaged, sort of-”

“What do you mean ‘sort of engaged’?"

“Forget that. I wasn’t planning on adopting him. The thing is, I plan on writing a book about alchemy. However, due to… complications, I cannot perform alchemy myself anymore. I would need an assistant to perform my practical experiments. I was thinking, perhaps Lucille could do that.”

“Hmmm,” Anne said nothing for a while as she thought. “And how much would that pay?”

_Fuck._

“Ah well… Food, clothes and knowledge? Perhaps a future job at a university I’m building? I may be sort of out of work right now.” She raised two eyebrows this time, and Ed could see her opinion of him lowering in her eyes. It seemed like she put every ounce of her being in the penetrating look she gave him.

“Not even a roof over his head?”

Ed scratched the back of his neck and smiled sheepishly. “We’ll be travelling a lot. But I have experience with that. Just think about it. I cannot perform alchemy, but, if I may say so myself, I am still one of the most brilliant alchemists of the time in theory. And Lucille would get a front row seat in my one-person class.” Anne’s eyes stayed on him for a while, until she sighed in defeat.

“I suppose the decision is up to Lucille. And knowing him he’ll be jumping at the opportunity. Just promise me, Mr. Elric, can you keep him safe?” Edward nodded. “He’ll be safe. And I resigned from the military so he won’t have to deal with them.” “Good. Because if something happens to him, you will have to deal with me. No matter your past, you’re still a teenager.”

_You’re probably wishing I could say the same about you, aren’t you?_

But Ed kept his mouth closed, smiled, and nodded.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!


End file.
